


the Definition of Poetry

by callmeflo



Series: if Wishes were Irises [9]
Category: Those Who Went Missing
Genre: Gen, Poetry, dictionary layout, inspired by boykeats.tumblr, requesks, very much experimental poetry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-09-20 05:58:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 1,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17017050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/callmeflo/pseuds/callmeflo
Summary: bloomverb, /blu:m/





	1. i bloom

** bloom  
**verb, /blu:m/

  1. golden petals opening like the sun’s eyelids, fluttering with each breath in and out, curled edges like ruffles beneath your chin. a regal flower. long striped shadows of veins stand stark against the dawn light that sears through the delicate flesh, satin, silk, slipping through your fingers before you can even reach out to touch. it’s immortal in its beauty.
  2. can you see the wildflowers swaying away from invisible paws? they know they’re safe, but they form a path out of respect. be mindful where you place your own feet.
  3. the trees curl their branches to shelter her, and their twigs sprout with blossom. autumn rain batters seed heads to the ground, but the bare stems uncurl dried petals one last time for her. as the snow piles up around them, her trailing tail frees shivering snowdrops from the ice.
  4. you’re far from any city here. are you lost?



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 3 AP (Writing: 152 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> Total AP per submission: 8
> 
> Base Score: 1 GP (Writing: 152 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 5


	2. ii autumn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for SpiritWindz's #1844

**autumn**  
noun, /‘ɔ:təm/

  1. dew lingers on the edges of grass blades without the sun’s warmth to dry it. the sky brightens but you’re still shivering, the breath from fleeing deer adds to the eerie fog that hangs around the tree trunks, ripe fruits wither to brown and old petals scatter in the wind. you press breeze-bitten fingers to a hot mug, steam swirls up into the brisk air, the wool scarf coiled around your neck leaves inappropriately colourful fibres behind as it catches on brambles.
  2. on the ground amongst the rapidly rotting detritus, warty, gnarly pumpkins swell from seeds dropped by passing birds. heavy feet step lightly, silently, translucent grey blending in with exposed rocks, sandy brown markings disappearing against damp loam, but you can feel the eyes on your back. higher, the treetops are a patchwork of fading greens, the season mottling the leaves with red, orange, yellow; a bronze masterpiece to hide the danger.
  3. one tree’s green remains. stalking its way around thickets, phasing straight through denser patches of woods, a curse drifting amongst their branches forebodingly, the sentry of the deep forest patrols their boundary. the dry, fallen leaves try to stay silent. the wind howls a warning that you can’t understand. you’re brave to walk here.



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 4 AP (Writing: 211 words)  
> +1 AP (Enchantment: 1 AP * 1)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 20
> 
> Base Score: 2 GP (Writing: 211 words)  
> +1 GP (Enchantment: 1 GP * 1)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 7


	3. iii sandstorm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for Bigbookwolf's #1810

**sandstorm  
** noun, /ˈsan(d)stɔ:m/

  1. you’re drowning. there’s grit scraping across your skin, your eyes are raw and blind, your throat is full and you’re drowning. cough it up, hunker down, you’ve no shelter out in this barren stretch of desert.
  2. storms are meant to pass as the wind runs out, but furious eyes are locked on your cowering form as a wild tail whips up the dunes again and again, paws thundering around you in a tornado of sand and you’re choking on it.
  3. you glimpse a pale face through squinted eyelids but it whirls away like a mirage caught in the gale. this territory is claimed, the broken arid city no longer belongs to humans. the sandstorm roars, _GET OUT_.



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 2 AP (Writing: 120 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 17
> 
> Base Score: 1 GP (Writing: 120 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 5


	4. iv play

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for wrath-kakerou's #1340

** play  
** verb, /pleɪ/

  1. the moon is high on a july night and you run alongside the wings of overeager gulls and the thrumming of webbed paws as white sand sifts through your toes. you slipped out of bed and left the hotel, called by the rush of the gentle tide and a beckon from someone you can’t describe. the sky smells like taffy and you can taste it on your tongue.
  2. nature is alive tonight, too. your soul is on fire like the yellow seaweed that curls around your ankle. palm fronds stroke your laughing cheeks as you pass. there’s something exhilarating about the seaside lit only by the stars, your pulse is thumping in your ears, the constellations are close enough to touch, are compelling you to let go of your inhibitions. you call out to the ocean, _is anyone there?_  and a wave swells and crashes and replies, _we are here, sea spirit._
  3. a speckled creature is stretched out on the sand beside where you eventually fall down, lazy eyes lit up with reflections of your joy. golden wireweed makes a crown around their head. the king of the bay. you look right through them but you can hear their whistling tune beneath the ocean’s song.



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 4 AP (Writing: 208 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 19
> 
> Base Score: 2 GP (Writing: 208 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 6


	5. v silence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for Chitterlings' #1899

**silence  
** noun, /ˈsʌɪləns/

  1. are you dreaming? don’t dare to take a step, the grass is fragile from dew freezing into white glass. don’t dare to breathe a breath, the delicate clouds will shatter and spear down from the heavens. don’t dare to close your eyes to the pure whiteness of silence. but aren’t you dreaming?
  2. it’s a tiny raindrop falling to the water’s surface without a sound, ripples ringing it and fading quickly. it’s snow falling in winter, heavy and knee deep but not a single flake makes a noise. it’s cold. is it cold? you look like ice, a sculpture in a courtyard with white roses blooming at your feet but their thorns will never sting you. your lips are blue.
  3. are you imagining the tinkling of broken pieces, the chiming of crystals? does glitter make a sound? can you hear me?
  4. the riverbank is silent but not still. colourful fins weave through the calmly flowing water, tiny paws scrabble at a willow’s roots, a human child skips a smooth pebble across the stream’s surface. it’s unnatural in its silence but so beautiful, pure, ethereal. your ears almost can’t handle it and are straining for the whisper of rustling foliage. why won’t you wake up?



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 4 AP (Writing: 206 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 19
> 
> Base Score: 2 GP (Writing: 206 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 6


	6. vi clutter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for twodles' #1244

**clutter  
** noun, /ˈklʌtə/

  1. there’s hope in your heart. your soul is ever seeking. stars light up dark eyes that flit back and forth with tireless thoughts. your petals are coated in fairy dust - take care you don’t drift away now.
  2. broken bike tyre, cracked terracotta, old rocking horse with ratty straw mane. flower labels half buried, rusted hand trowels, bird box come loose from its tree and now home to mice. lawn barely kept, clover growing rampant. the garden is a broken treasure trove of useless gems and is beautiful in its mess.
  3. your mind is the same. spotted like your fur, busy like your scampering feet, tangled like your snow tipped tail. like your pansy, your imagination is an iridescent galaxy, endless, unfathomable. scatterbrained, featherbrained, clutterbrained. be careful you don’t get lost in it.



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 2 AP (Writing: 135 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 17
> 
> Base Score: 1 GP (Writing: 135 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 5


	7. vii requiem

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for leafshadow04's #1107

**requiem**  
noun, /ˈrɛkwɪəm/

  1. your wings are broken like the crumbling stone feathers of graveyard angels with their sad eyes and downturned lips. you are offered bouquets of dull flowers with wilting petals and in each sour scent is a memory of joy that brings salty tears to your doleful eyes. you spread your wings for them but the pain grounds you.
  2. like an unfinished book you’re missing something, but you’re no author, you don’t know what comes next. your eyes are always hunting, your heart is always calling, your soul is aching for something you can’t find. if you could you would fly to the sun in search of it. and you would fall for it.
  3. nostalgia tastes like plum wine and sweet biscuits, it’s the feeling of the moon between your palms and a kiss on your smiling cheek. it’s rain trails on the window your forehead is pressed to, an expected voice from behind you that never comes, a string of beads wound so tight round your knuckles that they’re numb.
  4. from your dry throat keens a lament of piano song. there is no one to hear it but the withering souls that hang over their crosses and stroke trembling, skeletal fingers through your fur and tangle it with ichor.



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 4 AP (Writing: 209 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 19
> 
> Base Score: 2 GP (Writing: 209 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 6


	8. viii curious

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for Radda11's #1718

**curious  
**adjective, /ˈkjʊərɪəs/

  1. you know your garden like the back of your cloven hoof, every petal and stamen and honeybee and it’s not enough.
  2. your boots are tied tight and made sturdy, there’s a compass at your breast, and the case in your hand is full. freckles pattern your cheeks from days out in the sun, calluses stretch across your palms, a pen is tucked behind your ear ready for the notebook to emerge from your pocket. you’ve a globe on your desk that rattles from how much you spin it and it’s pockmarked from pins and strings.
  3. the world is a library, maybe not of written books but of knowledge for the taking and you want to read it all, will take it all. you put forget-me-nots and callicarpa in tea that you sip while gazing up at the clear night sky, and the galaxy stares back at you tauntingly with words so small you can’t decipher and so much theory you won’t ever be able to reach.



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 3 AP (Writing: 168 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 18
> 
> Base Score: 1.5 GP (Writing: 168 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 5.5


	9. ix new

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for Vantsu's #1481

**new  
**adjective, /nju:/

  1. you were someone else yesterday, as we all were. hush now, it’s okay.
  2. are your eyes stinging in this frosty air? are your paws too soft on these rocks and branches? I know these leafy vines are scratching at your baby-fresh skin, so delicate, such untouched purity, I can see the wonder on your face as clear as the pristine fur on your cheeks.
  3. if I could wrap you in silk I would; this world is no place for you. if I could send you to heaven I would; you’d be among your own kind, with your halo of kindness untarnished once more, don’t let it get scratched again.
  4. my darling, I can feel your heart crying. hush now, do not go gentle into that dark dark dark night.



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 2 AP (Writing: 130 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 17
> 
> Base Score: 1 GP (Writing: 130 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 5


	10. x unearthly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for Remaryn's #1734

**unearthly**  
adjective, /ʌn'ə:θli/

  1. the full moon is a lit chandelier above you that could fall any second. as you walk, the forest dirt stains your skin black with ritual ink. around you are bushes of roses so dark they could only be coloured by blood. there’s white lace on your neck and the pretty bowed ribbon is strangling you.
  2. the frigid wind blows through you and your body swirls away like cigarette smoke, then you’re coughing on marlboro and it tastes like freedom. the mascara on your eyelashes is running into your hair so you brush it across your cheeks like war paint. the tarots are on your side tonight. the wolves are watching your path, leader of the pack, spirit of the woods.
  3. they’ll find your bones buried in a shallow grave and you’ll watch as they polish them like trophies. in their hands your skull will grow horns curled and ridged and as sharp as your tongue, and your eyes will alight like kindling and set their worlds ablaze.



 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Base Score: 3 AP (Writing: 168 words)  
> +5 AP (Personal Work Bonus)  
> +10 AP (Other Esk Bonus: 10 AP * 1)  
> Total AP per submission: 18
> 
> Base Score: 1.5 GP (Writing: 168 words)  
> +4 GP (Poetry Bonus: 4)  
> Total GP per submission: 5.5


End file.
